44th Parl. 1st Sess.
June 7, 2022 10:00AM
- Jun/7/22 12:37:09 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am disappointed that the Bloc is not seeing the bigger picture here.
British Columbia has its own provincial carbon tax. That is something this motion would not affect whatsoever, but what it would affect is the GST. The goods and services tax is actually a tax on all provincial tax excise and the provincial-federal gas tax excise, as well as any carbon taxes. When we pay at the pump, that GST gets added to the total of it. This is one way in which that particular portion, that 5% on every dollar, would stay in the pockets of Canadians and it would not go to anyone else. This is a way we could actually start to help people, both on commuting and also on groceries, because groceries are heavily dependent on gas prices.
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- Jun/7/22 12:39:44 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, it is my privilege today to speak to our opposition day motion.
The number one issue facing my constituents right now is the fact that they cannot pay their bills, put fuel in their tank and put groceries on their table. Inflation is costing everyone an extra $2,000 this year alone. Seniors, students and working families are getting crushed by the dramatic rise in the cost of almost everything they purchase. Food is up almost 9.7% in the last year alone. Gas is at record highs and there seems to be no end in sight. Housing is now out of reach for millions of Canadians, who will never be able to have a home of their own, which, as a grandparent, greatly concerns me.
The government should be seized by this issue, but all it has are empty talking points. It still does not have a plan to address inflation and fix the supply chain issues. In fact, in a recent consumer debt index survey from MNP, 53% of Canadians surveyed said they are $200 a month away from being unable to pay their bills at the end of every month and meet their debt obligations. That is proof in itself that families are struggling to get by.
I want to focus my speech on the dramatic rise in the price of energy. Driving to work or heating or cooling one's home is not a luxury. It is a necessity in Canada. For those thinking the government cannot do anything to ease the price at the pump, let me just remind them, as we have heard from some of our opposition colleagues, that a significant portion of every litre of gas they pay for is heavily taxed.
If a constituent in Brandon, Manitoba went to the gas station and filled up an F-150, which is probably one of the most widely owned trucks in Canada, it would cost an astonishing $266.56. Out of that $266 to fill up the tank, the GST and the carbon tax combined would amount to $28.26. In my constituency, it is not unusual for residents to have to fill up their tank at least three times a month, as they have to drive long distances to go to work, drop the kids off at school, get groceries or go to the hospital.
If we pass this Conservative motion, we would provide immediate relief from the record-high energy prices by suspending the GST and the carbon tax. That would result in tax savings of close to $85 a month. For some, that may not seem like a lot, but I can assure my colleagues that for a working family, that is a lot of money.
Constituents of Brandon—Souris are disproportionately affected by the carbon tax. The Liberal government needs to start realizing that its policies affect rural and urban Canadians quite differently. My riding covers a span of well over 17,000 square kilometres. That figure may be hard to picture for the Minister of Finance, who lives in downtown Toronto, the ninth-smallest riding in Canada, but that is roughly the same size as three Prince Edward Islands put together.
I am a proud Manitoban. I am also proud to be from rural Canada. Unfortunately, I do not believe the government has any regard for the livelihoods and concerns of those who are from that portion of our great nation. Many members of the Liberal government probably do not understand what life in rural Manitoba is like. Let me paint a picture of it for them.
In my entire riding, there are only nine police stations and one Walmart. For many, the nearest full-scale hospital is a drive of up to two hours away. There is little to no public transportation in my riding, and many have to drive upwards of 30 minutes just to go to the nearest grocery store. I and the rest of the Conservative caucus believe in public transit but, let us face it, across rural Canada it is non-existent. Families need to take their kids to school and to hockey practice and to drive long distances to get to their jobs. With the price of gas hovering around $2 per litre, that is making life very difficult. I fear things are only going to get worse, as the Liberals are planning to hike the carbon tax even further: in fact, to actually quadruple it.
If the Liberals are concerned about those who live in rural Canada and all those who are struggling to pay their bills, they should vote in favour of our motion and suspend, not get rid of but suspend, the GST and the carbon tax on fuel.
The other part of our Conservative motion I want to touch on is taking the GST and the carbon tax off people's residential energy bills.
According to Manitoba Hydro, the carbon tax is equal to 9.79¢ applied to each cubic metre of natural gas that a household uses. The typical household in Manitoba will use around 2,250 cubic metres of natural gas in a year, resulting in $220 in carbon taxes. If we remove the GST from the average person's energy bills, it would result in even more savings.
We need to look no further than the Liberals' budget implementation act to see how their carbon tax is impacting people's pocketbooks. Part 1 of the budget implementation act aims to enact certain tax measures by “changing the delivery of Climate Action Incentive payments from a refundable credit claimed annually to a credit that is paid quarterly”. There is only one reason the government would have a need to change these rebates from annual to quarterly, and that is because the carbon tax is taking so much money out of people's pockets.
We also know from the Parliamentary Budget Officer's report released on March 24, 2022, that “[m]ost households...will see a net loss resulting from federal carbon pricing”. The report revealed that the average Manitoban will be giving $1,145 to the federal government due to the carbon tax. However, they will be receiving only $832 from the incentive payments, and $1,145 is a lot of money for those who are struggling to pay their bills.
The PBO report proves what we have been saying all along: The carbon tax is not cost-neutral and it is costing people a lot of money. To make matters worse, the Minister of Environment has been claiming that eight out of 10 Canadians get more money back from the carbon tax, but the PBO declares that not to be the case.
Let us just end the charade and suspend the carbon tax. It is one of the easiest things the government could do to immediately help families and seniors who are getting squeezed by record inflation. Instead of taxing hard-working people, a responsible government would come up with a plan that not only protects the environment, but also protects people's bank accounts.
The Liberals can make the climate action incentive payments as frequent as they want, but that is not going to change the fact that more Canadians are going to be worse off than not. Making the climate action incentive payments quarterly does not relieve financial stress for those who cannot afford to put gas in their tank this weekend. The fact that the government is ignoring the calls for help should be much more concerning to them. I know it certainly is for me.
I recently put out a survey on the price of fuel, and I am starting to receive responses. I heard from my constituent Chelsea, who said, “The middle class...and those who drive to work every day are the ones who are suffering most”. Maybe the finance minister needs to hear from Keith and Marlene, who are seniors living on a fixed income. They are worried about not being able to stay in their home. They said, “We are seniors and the only pensions we have are OAS and CPP. Our world is crazy with high prices. We own our home [but] for how long?”
Folks across the country are in difficult situations. With the price of fuel and, quite frankly, most other essential items being so high, it is no wonder that young adults are having such a hard time saving up for big purchases, such as a new car or a home.
I also want to stress how the Liberal government is continuing to leave farmers behind and putting them at a competitive disadvantage. Just a couple of weeks ago, almost every single Liberal MP voted against our Conservative bill to finally exempt farmers from the carbon tax.
In closing, I implore my Liberal colleagues to vote in favour of our Conservative motion, suspend the GST and the carbon tax, and give people some much-needed relief. It is time for action and it is time to help those struggling to make ends meet. People are tired of hearing nothing but platitudes. This proposal would guarantee immediate financial relief and put money back into people's pockets.
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- Jun/7/22 2:27:38 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, working Canadians and everyone else do not care what is causing inflation or why everything costs more.
What they do care about is being able to afford to buy groceries at the end of the month, making sure that their kids are not going to bed hungry, and being able to afford to fill up their vehicle so that they can get to work.
Whether it is the pandemic, COVID‑19, or anything else that the Liberals are going to blame, the reality is that they are doing absolutely nothing right now to help Canadians who need it.
Why are they so out of touch with Canadians?
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- Jun/7/22 2:31:10 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, one out of every four Canadians in this country is going hungry because they cannot afford groceries. At the same time, corporations are making record profits. They are breaking record after record.
Our plan is to tax the excess—
Some hon. members: Oh, oh!
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- Jun/7/22 2:31:45 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I just mentioned that Canadians are hungry and I hear laughter in the chamber. They should be ashamed of themselves.
One out of every four Canadians is hungry because they cannot afford groceries, while corporations are making record profits and are responsible for one-fourth of the inflation that Canadians are experiencing. Our plan is to tax the excess profits of these corporations and put the money directly into the pockets of Canadians who need it.
When will the government stop protecting the wealth of these corporations and start standing up for families that need help right now?
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- Jun/7/22 2:33:16 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we need to expand the tax that has been proposed for banks to the profitable oil and gas sector and corporate big box stores that are making record profits while Canadians are hungry and cannot afford food.
A quarter of Canadians are going hungry because they cannot afford groceries, while corporations are making record profits. Our plan is to tax those excess profits and redistribute the money directly to families.
When will this government stand up for families instead of protecting the profits of big corporations?
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- Jun/7/22 5:27:01 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, today I will be splitting my time with the wonderful member for Sarnia—Lambton.
Once again, I find myself standing in this place, along with my Conservative colleagues, to speak on behalf of my constituents of Hastings—Lennox and Addington and on behalf of struggling Canadians who are concerned about the cost of living.
Just this week in particular, one of my constituents posted this on her social media: “As per our weekend routine, today I went to fill up my car and buy groceries for our family. This routine normally costs around $300. Today it was $500. Seriously, how are people surviving right now? I don't normally get so shaken up about things like this, but we've been in a constant state of transition for three-plus years now, always pivoting, always trying to figure out a new plan for the way we do things. I know there were parents out there struggling before inflation, and I can't even imagine what is keeping you up at night now.”
While the current government often hand-waves its role in inflation domestically, there is one area where it could make things better: lowering prices at the pumps for Canadians. They cannot wait until carbon tax rebate season for money to buy groceries and the medication they need today. Then again, I suppose the point of the tax is to make it prohibitively expensive to drive. Of course, this completely ignores the plight of rural Canadians, who literally depend on a vehicle in order to survive. The carbon tax is only driving up fuel prices and is disabling business owners in my riding. That is why the Conservatives tried to put a halt to the bleeding by introducing an opposition day motion to reduce prices by 5%. Sadly, it was not supported.
In March of this year, while speaking to that motion, I urged the members of this place to consider the official opposition's realistic, tangible and direct solutions for Canadians suffering from high prices. I noted that, up until that date, this legislature's reaction to those gas price increases was completely inadequate. Two and a half months later, nothing has changed, except that the price of gas continues to rise.
In a few short weeks, this House will adjourn for summer recess while we go home to our respective ridings to work locally. As a legislature, we will have no capacity to provide relief for single parents, low-income families, seniors or small businesses. They will face continuing increases on groceries, gas and the basic necessities of life. In my humble opinion, this country is spinning in a downward spiral and we need leadership. We need to provide something to Canadians so they do not feel abandoned for the next two and a half months. Today, in our motion, we are offering a chance to put politics aside and deliver the relief that Canadians need.
Every single day, I speak to constituents in my riding. They are worried. They are having trouble sleeping. People just do not feel like they can get ahead. Young families are being busted apart because of financial stress. Too many seniors are feeling helpless and ignored, and their quality of life is failing. On top of that, food insecurity is staring people in the face.
On this side of the House, we have been trying in vain to provide some sort of relief, to no avail. I know my hon. colleagues have already pointed this out, but I feel it necessary to reiterate. As previously stated, when gas prices continued to increase, we asked that the government suspend the GST on fuel to give Canadians a break. We asked again for relief for Canadians by suspending the carbon tax increase on April 1, and we also asked that the tariff on fertilizer bought before March 2 be removed in order to help our agricultural producers.
I recognize that it can be difficult for some people to accept a good idea when it comes from somebody else. Perhaps that is why the government stubbornly refused to follow through with the previous government's decision to purchase the F-35s, despite everyone, apart from the lobbyists working for competitors, knowing it was the right decision. Barb aside, I implore the government and this House to take substantive, meaningful and timely action to help Canadians out, because they cannot afford to wait.
I know that I am not the only one seeing regular, everyday Canadians struggle with the cost of living. We in this chamber have a tremendous responsibility. It is enormous, but we must also never forget the people who sent us here. Canadians are suffering with the high cost of fuel, food and housing. The taxpayers who put the confidence in us to be in this place do not get a housing allowance. They do not have travel points and they cannot claim any meal allowance. It is no wonder that many Canadians are losing faith in their elected officials.
They turn on the news and see the highlights of question period, which often is little more than theatre. I suppose this is the natural result of a legislature that puts more focus on communication and sound bites instead of good policy. A very wise man, if at times a very difficult man, saw this trend starting in the 1980s. The late member for Yukon and deputy prime minister, Erik Nielsen, lamented this shift to focus on commentary, interviews and opinion papers. The sound bite was the goal, not the substance of the discussion. Nuance was dying in front of his eyes, and in his autobiography, he tried to warn us.
In a similar vein, the individual who gave the inaugural televised speech in the U.K. House of Commons, Ian Gow, said in November 1989:
I have always voted against the televising of the proceedings of this House, and I expect that I always will. The brief intervention earlier of the hon. Member for Bradford, South (Mr. Cryer) did nothing to alter my view. Despite my strongly held opinions, a letter that I received—three weeks ago—I believe that a copy was sent to each of us and possibly even to you, Mr. Speaker—made the following preposterous assertion: “The impression you make on television depends mainly on your image (55 per cent) with your voice and body language accounting for 38 per cent of your impact. Only 7 per cent depends on what you are actually saying.”
This is sad. While Ian Gow and, indeed, the entirety of the Parliament at the time thought those claims preposterous, there is no denying that the quality of debate and the level of co-operation have declined and been largely replaced with imagery, with theatre. A cursory reading of the historical Hansards will show this. The fact that the NDP felt it necessary to surrender its money-scrutinizing authority to the Liberal government in order for a promise shows this.
Every single person in this room, including my good friends on our side of the House, needs to do the job we were sent here to do: to work with other parties and fight for the best interests of all Canadians. I ask my colleagues across the aisle to please exercise a minimal amount of humility. Adopting this Conservative opposition day motion would do just that.
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- Jun/7/22 5:57:55 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, before I begin, I want to say that I will be sharing my time with the member for Abitibi—Témiscamingue.
I am very pleased to speak to this motion, and I thank the Conservative Party for bringing it forward. The rising cost of living is affecting everyone, including people back home in the Lower St. Lawrence and the Gaspé. Gas, groceries, housing and necessities have all gone up in price. People need housing, they need food and they need to travel to get to work, but they are increasingly struggling to afford all those things. I think it is our job, as parliamentarians, to find solutions to this problem.
What bothers me a little about this motion, though, is that the Conservatives have again found a way to bring up lifting the health restrictions. They talk about inflation, but they put a spin on it so that they can revive an issue that we have already discussed many times in the House. Each time, we have argued and defeated these motions calling for the health restrictions to be lifted immediately. I think it is ridiculous to drag up the issue again with this very long motion. We have debated this issue extensively and concluded that it should not be a political choice, but a scientific one. It is a bit unfortunate to see the Conservatives putting forward a motion like this again and trying to link it to the rising cost of living affecting all of our constituents.
As a solution to help people, the Conservatives are suggesting in this motion that consumption taxes be suspended, that the health restrictions immediately be lifted once and for all, and that the carbon tax be eliminated. That is their solution to help people deal with the rising cost of living: eliminate a measure brought in to fight climate change, politicize an issue that should not be politicized and reduce government revenues.
My colleagues have already shared the Bloc Québécois's position on these measures. Since our position has not changed, allow me to reiterate them. I think that inflation and the rising cost of living are the result of a complex structural problem that will not be fixed by one-time half measures that have little impact. As I was saying, these measures could immediately reduce the government's revenues, and I think that we could find stronger, more sensible solutions that would deliver quick, concrete results.
I am not the best at math, but I can do basic calculations. If a measure reduces the government's revenues, then the government will not be able to fund reliable public services and programs that provide direct assistance to individuals. I do not know whether my colleagues are experiencing the same thing, but I am getting a lot of calls for help in my riding. Constituents are calling on their member of Parliament to help them deal with the rising cost of living.
I think that we need resources to achieve our ambitions in this case. It would be unrealistic to think that implementing one-time measures on the cost of goods will truly help Quebeckers and Canadians deal with global inflation, which is affecting a variety of products and services and which will require long-lasting measures.
In reading between the lines of the motion, I came to a simple realization. These proposals will not really help people deal with the rising cost of living. What I understand, and I hope I am wrong, is that this measure to abolish the carbon tax will only help the oil and gas companies. I will say this again and again, as often as I have to: The oil and gas companies do not need federal help right now.
Take the energy company Suncor, for example. Last year, in the first quarter, it had net profits of $821 million. This year, in the first quarter, it made almost $3 billion in profits. I honestly do not believe that this company needs to be exempted from paying tax. I do not think that abolishing this tax is really going to directly improve the lives of citizens or households. Furthermore, some provinces already have their own systems that work well. For example, Quebec's carbon market is effective, and it is good for the environment.
As I said, getting rid of these kinds of measures will not put more money in our constituents' pockets. Inflation is real, we know it, and it is putting households in Quebec and across the country in a real jam.
Real solutions go deeper. To get there, we have to think about how to create wealth while respecting the environment and, most importantly, how to share that wealth. This situation is not going to fix itself. I do not think band-aid solutions will get us there, certainly not when voter confidence in elected representatives in general is lukewarm. I do not think putting these inadequate solutions forward helps anyone. It just fuels voter cynicism. It is our job to bring a little more wisdom and rigour to the proposals we put to the government.
I heard my colleague from Mégantic—L'Érable say yesterday that Quebeckers are suffering from the rising cost of living, and he is absolutely right.
The Comité des citoyennes et citoyens Mitis organized a march that was held last Friday in my riding. The participants were essentially asking for appropriate measures. About 20 people who often live in precarious conditions braved the rain to ask for help, to ask us to take action and to ask the federal government for a little assistance. As they marched, they chanted a slogan: “I found a place to live, but I can't afford to eat.” We need to take a moment to reflect on the fact that my constituents were basically telling us that they have to choose between food and shelter. That is what people living on low incomes are worried about right now.
Supporting this motion would mean abolishing the carbon tax. That is the solution this motion proposes to these individuals, and it makes no sense. Have we lost sight of how serious this is? Maybe.
Let us talk instead about meaningful solutions that can be applied quickly to truly help our constituents. If we wanted to seriously address inflation, we could consider taxing the wealthiest members of society. This is not a new idea. During the last election, the Bloc Québécois proposed creating a special temporary tax on the wealthy to have them contribute to the economic recovery and, to some extent, pay down the pandemic-related deficits.
We are not the only ones who think this is a good idea. Last year, the Parliamentary Budget Officer estimated that a tax on excess profits earned by big firms in 2020 would have generated $7.9 billion for the federal treasury. That $7.9 billion is something to think about. I think it is a good start.
The President of United States has also proposed some good ideas, including a tax on the super-rich to finance his postpandemic investment plan. This tax on unrealized capital gains would apply to roughly 700 taxpayers and would raise hundreds of billions of dollars, ensuring that the wealthiest Americans contribute their fair share of the historic funding needed for a strong recovery.
Last winter, some Quebec business people even proposed another special temporary tax, one that would apply to businesses that kept operating or made a profit during the pandemic, in order to help those that were severely affected.
There are plenty of good ideas out there, so we could set aside the idea of eliminating carbon tax. As I was saying, I do not believe that that is the type of solution that will improve people's lives, because the carbon tax was created to fight climate change.
There are many other subjects I wanted to address, such as the fact that higher gas prices are affecting people back home, such as taxi drivers, truckers and farmers. I have mentioned that my father was a trucker. He recently told me that he thought he might stop driving his trucks because gas is too expensive. It is terrible to see entrepreneurs give up on their dreams while oil companies get richer.
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